What Does “Intervention” Mean?
In English, intervention refers to the act of interfering or becoming involved in a situation—often to prevent harm, improve outcomes, or change a course of action.
It is commonly used in fields like healthcare, education, psychology, international relations, and everyday conversation.
Common Types of Intervention
- Medical Intervention: Procedures or treatments to improve health (e.g., surgery, therapy).
- Educational Intervention: Strategies to support struggling students (e.g., tutoring, IEPs).
- Psychological Intervention: Therapeutic actions to address mental health issues.
- Military or Political Intervention: Involvement by one country in another’s affairs.
- Family Intervention: A structured attempt by loved ones to help someone with addiction or crisis.
Real-Life Examples
“The teacher implemented a reading intervention for students falling behind in literacy.”
“Early medical intervention saved his life after the heart attack.”
“The United Nations called for peaceful intervention in the conflict zone.”
How to Use “Intervention” in a Sentence
- As a noun: “Her timely intervention stopped the argument from escalating.”
- Often paired with adjectives: early intervention, direct intervention, humanitarian intervention.
- Common collocations: require intervention, call for intervention, successful intervention.
Tips for English Learners
- Remember: “Intervention” is always a noun. The verb form is “to intervene.”
- Pronunciation: /ˌɪn.t̬ɚˈven.ʃən/ (in-ter-VEN-shun)
- Don’t confuse it with “invention” or “intention”—they sound similar but have very different meanings!